Plastic container



May 2, 1961 A. w. WHITTON, JR

PLASTIC CONTAINER Filed Jan. 28, 1959 r I /Nl/ENTO J if, ZZZ/:14, ,4 By ATTORNEYS.

United Statfi Fatality-O PLASTIC CONTAINER Aldean W. Whitton, Jr., Gleuview, lll., assignor to American l-lospltal Supply Corporation, Evanston, 11]., a corporation of Illinois 1 Filed Jan. 28, 1959, Ser. No. vssnszs 11 Claims. (Cl. 222-540 This inventionhrelates to a plastic container which is particularly useful in hospitals, clinics and the like as a: disposable urine specimen container.

A main object of the present invention is to provide a plastic container formed from parts which may be more easily and much more compactly stored and which may be readily assembled at the location of intended use. Another object is to provide an inexpensive and completely disposable container formed entirely of a combustible plastic material. Unlike the paper specimen containers presently in use which have metal reinforcing rings or rims, a completely combustible container leaves no metallic residue after burning which might ultimately clog an incinerator.

A further object is to provide a urine specimen container formed from two mechanically joined sections which sealingly engage each other along two annular sealing zones to insure a liquid-tight union between the parts. Another object is to provide a two-piece plastic container wherein the inherent flexibility of the plastic is utilized in providing a liquid-tight seal between the mechanically joined pieces. A still further object is to provide a container formed from two plastic sections, the section forming the side walls of the container being adapted for nesting with other similar sections while at the same time providing a pouring spout which does not interfere with the nesting and storing of the parts. Yet another object is to provide a transparent plastic container which permits inspection and testing of its contents without removal of such contents therefrom.

Other objects will appear from the specification and drawings in which:

Figure l is a top plan view of a container embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a broken elevational view of the container showing the spout formation therein;

Figure 4 is an enlarged broken sectional view illustrating the rim construction at the bottom of the container body; 1

Figure 5 is an enlarged broken vertical section showing the separate base part for the container; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged broken vertical sectional view showing the parts of Figures 4 and 5 in assembled relation.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, the letter A generally designates a container having a body B and a base C. Eachpart of the two-piece container is formed entirely of a relatively hard but flexible plastic material such as polystyrene. It will.

be understood, of course, that other suitable plastic materials such as high molecular weight polyethylene may also be used. Preferably, the plastic material used in forming the container. and particularly the body thereof, is transparent rather than opaque in character. As used in this specification, the word transparent refers not 2 sufiiciently transparent to permit inspection of the contents of the container through the walls thereof. 7

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the container body B is generally frusto-conical in shape and is open at both its bottom and at its top. There are no external projections interrupting the substantially smooth outer surface of the body except for a circumferentially-extending rim or bead 10 at the lower end thereof. Similarly, the interior surface of the hollow conical body is also substantially smooth and uninterrupted except for an annular and inwardly extending shoulder 11 spaced slightly below the bodys upper edge 12. Thus, the body unit is readily adapted for. stacking and any desired number of container bodies may be arranged in nested relation, as indicated by containers B and B." represented by broken lines in Figure 2, to facilitate handling, shipment and storage. To conserve space at the site of intended use, it is desirable to store the container bodies in nestedrelation and then assemble the parts as each container is needed.

Referring to the enlarged view of Figure 4, it will be seen that the circumferential bead 10 has a cylindrical side surface 13, an upper bearing surface 14 which slopes downwardly and outwardly, and an angled under-surface 15 which inclines downwardly and inwardly, and which terminates adjacent the narrow annular bottom surface 16 of the body.

Base C is generally cup-shaped and has a flat bottom wall 17 and an integrally formed cylindrical side wall 18. As illustrated most clearly in Figure 5, adjacent the top of the cup-shaped base is an annular inwardly projecting lip 19 providing a downwardly and inwardly sloping upper surface 20 and an inwardly and upwardly inclined undersurface 21. It will be noted that the inclination of undersurface 21 and the slope of beads upper surface 14 are substantially the same. In the illusonly .to clear plastics but also to plastics which are tration given, both surfaces are inclined at approximately 30 degrees from the horizontal although it will be understood that variations from this angle of inclination may be made while at the same time achieving substantially the same results, as will be brought out more fully as the specification proceeds.

As indicated in Figure 6, the internal diameter of.

the base below lip 19 is the same or slightly greater than the maximum diameter of the head of body B. However, the circular opening defined by the pointed annular lip 19 is smaller than the outer diameter of bead 10. In addition, the distance between the lower edge of the lips undersurface 21 and the upper surface of the bases bottom wall 17,is slightly less than the corresponding vertical distance between the lower edge of the beads upper surface 14 and the bottom of the container body. As a result, when'the parts are assembled as shown in Figure 6, they are in a constant state of stress. The side wall of the base, in trying to return from a compressed state to its original condition shown in Figure 5, urges the undersurface of lip 19 inwardly and into tight sealing engagement with the inclined upper surface 14 of the bead. Since the mutually engaging surfaces 21 and 14 of the lip and bead are inclined, the inward force exerted by the bases side wall, and the corresponding outward force exerted by the lower portion of the container body, urge the annular lower edge or surface 16 of the body into tight sealing engagement with the upper surface of the bases bottom wall 17. Therefore, when the parts arefitted together as shown in Figure 6, liquid-tight seals are formed about two annular areas. edge 16 of the body and the upper surface of the base, while the other is formed between the lip and the inclined upper surface of the bead. With reference to One seal occurs between the annular lower 3, the se'albetween' edge 16 and that the unit pressure between the contacting surface is relatively great and produces a tight seal between the parts because of the small surface area provided by lower edge portion 16.

Referringnow to Figures 1 through 3, itwill be seen that the annular internal shoulder or ledge 11 is provided with an outwardly directed V-shaped notch or groove 22. The side wall portion 23 of the body which extends upwardly above the ledge is also provided with a depending V-shaped notch or groove adjacent the notch ofthe ledge or shoulder 11. The two notches act as weirs in directing and controlling the flow of liquid poured from the container and, in combination with the adjacent portions of the container body, comprise a pouring spout for the unit. It will be noted that there are no spout portions projecting outwardly beyond the smooth outer surface of the body and that such a construction thereby contributes greatly to compact nestingwhen the bodies B are stacked for shipment and storage. It will also be noted that the internal shoulder 11 acts as a stop to prevent the nested containers from wedging or jamming together.

The annular upper portion 23 of the container body assists in directing fluid through the notch or weir 24 during a pouring operation. In addition, this upper wall portion defines a circular recess for receiving a suitable paper plastic or fiber cap (not shown) such as is customarily used on milk bottles.

As pointed out above, the urine specimen containers of the present invention are preferably shipped to their the base, it will be noted destination and stored for use in knocked-down condition, the container bodies B being stacked in nested relation to conserve space. When a specimen container is needed for use, a body portion B is simply withdrawn from the stack and is inserted into a base portion C so that the parts lock together, to form a double liquidtight seal, the assembly of the parts being facilitated by virtue of the inclination of surfaces 15 and 20. After the specimen has been obtained, an ordinary milk bottle cap (not shown) is pressed into the space defined by the upper wall portion or rim 23 to seal the upper end of the container.

Since the container is formed from a transparent plastic material, a laboratory technician may readily examine the contents to see whether there is any sediment, blood, etc. in the specimen. Furthermore, a hydro-meter may "be inserted into the specimen within the container to obtain a specific gravity reading without the necessity of pouring the urine out into a clear glass container to obtain such hydrometer readings.

Unlike the combination paper and metal containers presently used in hospitals, clinical laboratories and doctors ofiices for holding urine specimens, the present container, after it has been emptied of its contents, may be easily and completely disposed of by incineration. Since the entire container is formed completely of a combustible plastic material, there is no residue after burning which would remain and which might ultimately clog an incinerator.

While in the foregoing specification I have disclosed an embodiment of the present invention in considerable detail for purposes of illustration, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that many of these details may be varied considerably without departing from-the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A urine specimen container formed from fiexibfe plastic material comprising a frusto-conical hollow body having an open bottom and having an annular bottom edge, said body providing adjacent the bottom thereof an external circumferential bead having a downwardly and outwardly inclined annular bearing surface, and a cup-shaped base receiving the beaded lower portion of said body, said base having a bottom wall and having a cylindrical side wall providing an inwardly extending annular lip defining an opening of smaller diameter than the largest diameter of said bead, said lip being in tight sealing contact with said inclined bearing surface for directing said body downwardly and urging the bodys annular bottom edge into tight sealing contact with the bottom wall of said base, the beaded lower portion of said body being spaced inwardly from said side wall of said base beneath said lip.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which said lip provides an upwardly and inwardly inclined undersurface pressing tightly against the inclined bearing surface of said bead.

3. The structure of claim 2 in which the side wall of said base and the lower portion of said body are under stress, said side wall being stretched slightly outwardly by said bead and urging said bead downwardly to force the bottom edge of the body into tight sealing engagement with the bottom wall of said base.

4. A urine specimen container formed from flexible transparent plastic material comprising a frusto-conical hollow body having an open bottom adapted for receiving a like body in nested relation therein, said body having an external bead extending about the open bottom thereof, and a cup-shaped base adapted to receive the lower portion of said body, said base having an annular inwardly-projecting lip defining an opening of smaller diameter than the greatest diameter of said bead and having a bearing surface in liquid-sealing engagement with a bear ing surface of said bead, at least one of said bearing surfaces of said lip and bead being inclined downwardly and outwardly to urge said body downwardly into tight liquid-sealing engagement with the upper bottom surface of said base, the beaded lower portion of said body being spaced inwardly from the inner side surfaces of said base beneath said lip.

5. The structure of claim 4 in which both said head and said lip provide mutually engaging downwardly and outwardly inclined surfaces forming a liquid-tight seal between said base and said body.

6. The structure of caim 4 in which said head projects outwardly from the lower portion of saidbody and is provIded with a downwardly and outwardly inclined upper bearing surface for engagement by said lip.

7. The structure of claim 4 in which the lip of said base projects inwardly from the upper portion thereof and provides a downwardly and outward'y inclined undersurface for sealing engagement with the bearing surface of said bead.

8. A urine specimen container formed from flexible plastic material comprising an upwardly tapered hollow body having an open bottom and an open top, said body being provided with an outwardly projecting circumferential bead adjacent the bottom thereof, a detachable cup-shaped base receiving the lower portion of said body and being provided with means for sealingly engaging said bead, said body being provided with an internal an -nular shoulder spaced slightly below the top thereof, said shoulder and the portion of said body extending upwardly thereabout being provided with adjacent notches for di recting and controlling the flow of liquid as it is poured from said container.

9. The structure of claim 8 in which said body is frustoconical in shape and is adapted to be stacked in nested relation with other like bodies when the bases are unattached thereto.

10. A urine specimen container formed from flexible plastic material comprising a frusto-conical hollow body having an open bottom and having an annular bottom edge, said body providing adjacent the bottom thereof an external circumferential bead havingan upper annular bearing surface, and a cup-shaped base receiving the beaded lower portion of said body, said base having a bottom wall and having a cylindrical side wall providing an inwardly extending annular lip defining an opening of smaller diameter than thelargest diameter of said bead,

5 said lip being in tight sealing contact with said bearing surface and urging the body's annular bottom edge into tight sealing contact with the bottom wall of said base, said bead being spaced inwardly from the side wall of said base beneath said lip.

11. A urine specimen container formed from flexible plastic material comprising a frusto-conical hollow body having an open bottom adapted. for receiving a like body in nested relation therein, a base adapted to be secured to the lower portion of said body for closing the open bottom thereof, said body having an open top and being provided with an internal annular shoulder spaced therebelow, said annular shoulder and the side wall portion of said body projecting thereabove being provided with notches for directing and controlling the flow of fluid as it is poured from said container.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,815,057 Tupper Dec. 3, 1957 2,858,041 Robinson Oct. 28, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 527,336 Italy May 30, 1955 544,906 Italy June 21, 1956 555,844 Canada Apr. 15, 1958 1,098,217 France Mar. 2, 1955 

